With the advance of modern computers and telecommunication technology and with the rapid development of the information superhighway, computers and TVs are moving closer and closer, and brand new home electronics are emerging, combining the features of multimedia computers with other devices such as TVs, VCRs, CD players, telephones and fax machines.
The most cited example of these new home electronics is the interactive TV, which can be used for ordering videos on-line, doing home shopping and playing interactive games or sports. The combination of computers and TVs also requires a combination of the two different kinds of user interface used on these two kinds of machines. Computers use keyboards and mice as input devices, but TVs use remote controls as input devices. The reason for these different input devices is partially due to the different user habit on these two kinds of machines. A computer user is usually within one or two feet to the display screen, but a TV user is usually some feet away from the display screen. An interactive TV requires a input device which is good both for a computer and for a TV. The input device must have remote control capability and the capability of manipulating a cursor position. The importance of new and good input devices for interactive TVs has been long recognized by people in interactive TV industry, as descried in the article by Thomas E. Weber, p. R10, Mar. 21, 1994, Wall Street Journal. The major problem with the current remote controls is that they are becoming more and more complicate, and less and less user-friendly. The ultimate remote control should be based on Graphic User Interface (GUI) like that on a Macintosh computer with remote cursor manipulating functions and a few buttons working like that on a mouse.
At present, there have been two general approaches to design the input devices for interactive TVs: (1) to make computer mice work at a remote distance and (2) to add cursor control capability to the conventional remote controls for TVs. The first approach include remote mice, remote track balls, remote joysticks, and "air mouse" such as Sony's Egg and Creative Labs' AeroMouse or AeroPen. The second approach include remote control with cursor keys such as the remote control for Philip's CD-i, and the cursor keys have been improved from four directions to twelve directions, or even to continues in directions with cursor disks. The coding signals for these remote input devices have been either in infrared or in electromagnetic waves.
All the above mentioned input devices can perform the basic functions of an interactive TV, such as moving a cursor and clicking on an icon or manual. However, all these devices have one common disadvantage: the cursor position can not be controlled intuitively, comfortably or conveniently by the standard of average home users. It is therefore imperative to invent a new and better input device that provide the comfort and convenience.
The rather easy way to make the better input device is to make a remote pointing device that is directly related to the cursor position: where the remote pointing device pointed at is where the cursor position is.